Marco Verratti has “nothing against” Luis Enrique despite being forced out of PSG | OneFootball

Marco Verratti (30) has said that he holds no ill feelings towards Luis Enrique, who essentially forced him out of Paris Saint-Germain this summer.

Prior to Luis Enrique’s arrival at PSG this summer, Verratti had spent 11 years with Les Parisiens. Having arrived from Pescara in 2012, the ‘Little Owl’ went on to make 416 appearances for PSG, scoring 11 goals and registering 61 assists. However, whilst once again pivotal in PSG’s title-winning campaign last season, he was frozen out this summer.

It was reported that he was told by Luis Enrique and sporting consultant Luis Campos that he was surplus to requirements and that he should therefore leave the club. The Italian international was excluded from the first-team setup and trained with the club’s “undesirables.” When the start of the season came around, Verratti was left out of Luis Enrique’s matchday squads, before securing a move to Qatari side Al Arabi in September.

Verratti has now revealed the details of his departure in an interview with L’Équipe. “I am a sincere person; I was what I think. They did the same. Upon my return for pre-season, I had an interview with the coach (Luis Enrique) and he told me I wasn’t part of his plans. He is a very good manager. He is doing good things with PSG. I didn’t see it as a personal decision. I have never had enemies in my life. I prefer things to be clear,” said Verratti.

The former Pescara midfielder said that the reasons for his departure were never revealed. “No [I didn’t receive any explanation], he wanted change. I had spent many years here and he wanted something new. Things don’t happen by chance for me. The club wanted me to look elsewhere so I started to talk with other teams, and I chose Qatar.”

He added, “I think in football there are never ‘good’ reasons. Everyone has their vision of how to play. I think that Luis Enrique needed other players. I have nothing against him. We have a very good relationship. I trained to the max every day, and he couldn’t say anything bad about me. Sometimes there are changes, and that’s good too.”

It had been reported by Le Parisien that Luis Enrique had told Verratti that he was the “prototype of the player he hates,” referring specifically to the Italian’s lifestyle choices.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle